The invention addresses the problem of home security, and the increasing concern for personal safety of those living in both urban and rural areas. An individual is especially susceptible to attack by an intruder from the time he or she leaves an automobile, or a group of friends, up to the time he or she enters the home and re-locks the door. Several factors add to the vulnerability of the resident. For example, the intruder generally cannot be seen by the resident or neighbors prior to attacking. The resident often has arms filled with grocery bags, a handbag, a brief case, or the like, prior to entering the home, and cannot easily escape or defend against the intruder. In addition, the intruder may hide in nearby trees or shrubbery, and wait until after the resident has unlocked the door before staging his attack and entering the home.
Security systems comprising a self-contained intrusion detector used to monitor a predetermined space having a remote controller transmitting an RF signal to control the self-contained monitor are well known in the prior art. In such systems, the monitor typically includes a primary power source, a motion sensor, a responder and a memory circuit. The motion sensor detects an unauthorized entry into the predetermined space causing the responder to, optionally sound an alarm and, at the same time, causing the memory circuit to record the occurrence of the intrusion. Before reentering the premises, a returning occupant activates the remote controller prompting a response from the self-contained monitor to determine if an intrusion event has occurred in order to determine whether it is safe to enter the premises.
Since the personal wellbeing of the returning occupant is at risk, it is essential that the self-contained monitor provides not only a reliable means by which to record an intrusion event but also a reliable means by which to remotely test whether an intrusion has, or has not, occurred. It is extremely dangerous for a returning occupant to unwittingly confront an intruder.
The systems of the prior art suffer from the disadvantage that the remote controllers associated therewith are hand-held and are often lost, misplaced or otherwise unavailable to the occupant of the premises when approaching the residence or secured space.
It is an object of the invention to provide an improved security system and method of the type described above wherein the remote controller is never unavailable to the occupant.